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The colors that paint Mexico: How a nation found its soul in every hue

By
Bethany Platanella
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20
Mexico has a distinctive palette. (Unsplash/Mikka Luotio)

Years ago, I took a cable car tour above Iztapalapa. Beneath me was a patchwork of roofs covered in colorful murals. I had taken a similar tour in Medellín, Colombia, yet the visual pattern of the Mexican rooftops was highly distinct. Sure, there were paintings of Mexica warriors and jaguar heads, but the detail that really stood out was the color.

Mexico is a landscape of rosy pinks, bold blues, golden yellows and burnt reds. Could you say the same for Peru? Guatemala? Turkey? Yes. Still, it’s undeniable that certain shades just look Mexican. That’s because they are, and here’s why.

Colorful market in Mexico
Vibrant colors can be found in any Mexican market, or indeed almost anywhere in the country. (Wikimedia Commons/Israel Magaña Velazquez)

The ancestral language of color

Long before ancient civilizations adopted the written word, people communicated through color. The Mexica defined cardinal directions using different hues — red for east, green for south, black for north and white for west. Moving eastward, the Maya linked colors to the cosmos, and yellow symbolized creation while blue meant rain or, depending on context, sacrifice. The means to collect these colors were purely agricultural: insects, plants and earth minerals were used for the unique pigments they carried. These stains could be found on murals and codices, as well as pottery and statues offered to the gods.

With the Spanish arrival came even more pigments and techniques to extract them, not to mention religious iconography that soon showcased a blend of indigenous and European shades. These tints illustrate Mexico’s essence, and while many are now achieved through commercial development, their symbolic meanings continue to live on through art, food, home design and fashion.

Cochineal red

Arturo García Bustos mural
Mural by painter Arturo García Bustos showing the cochineal harvest in Oaxaca. (Wikimedia Commons/ArbyBB)

If you’ve been to Oaxaca City, you’ve seen firsthand the wealth generated by a single color. Mexico’s southern colonial gem was once home to the second-richest export – nocheztli, also known as cochineal red. The color comes from crushed cochineal, parasitic insects that live on the nopal cactus. In pre-Hispanic Mexico, red was a sacred hue, representing life, death and renewal, often found on temples and burial sites, in textiles and clothing. From this particular red came varying shades of pinks, crimsons and even burgundies. When Mexico joined the global trade market, cochineal red spread throughout Europe, even coloring the famous “redcoats” worn by the British Army. Oaxaca Valley farmers began breeding the insects to support trade, generating millions in capital.

The process wasn’t quick — more than 70,000 female bugs and eggs are required to make one kilo of pigment — but the finished product was more brilliant than any red Europeans had ever seen. At its height, the pigment was more valuable than gold. The money that poured in funded the city’s expansion from military outpost to commercial hub, resulting in the construction of impressive stone mansions and gold-leafed cathedrals.

Maya blue

Yucatan community mixing pre-Hispanic formula for Maya Blue
Members of the Dzán community assist in mixing the pre-Hispanic formula for Maya Blue. (Mark Viales)

Maya Blue is believed to have been first developed by the Maya around the 8th century CE. It is one of the earliest known examples of advanced organic-inorganic chemistry — a blend of natural indigo dye and clay, sourced from the Yucatán Peninsula.​ You’ve certainly seen the bold turquoise color on Mesoamerican murals, pottery and sculptures from Calakmul to Chichén Itzá. Generally, the color is associated with water, rebirth and the rain god, Chaac.​

The most traditional craftspeople make Maya blue the same way today as thousands of years ago — leaves and stems from the añil plant are submerged in a vat of water for 12–24 hours to ferment. The liquid is then transferred to another vat and agitated for several hours. This speeds up the oxidation process, creating blue flecks that sink to the bottom. Sometimes, lime (stone) is added. The “mud” that forms at the bottom is drained and dried in the sun, resulting in what the Maya once called “blue gold”. The color can withstand remarkable natural threats, from humidity to acid, retaining its lustrous hue for centuries.

Mexican pink

Ramón Valdiosera
Ramón Valdiosera, the fashion designer who gave rosa mexicano to the world. (Instagram)

Rosa mexicano is not a natural pigment, but as the shade is so definitive of Mexico, it would be impossible not to mention it. In 1949, Veracruzano fashion designer Ramón Valdiosera received government funding to present a clothing collection at New York’s Waldorf Astoria Hotel during “Mexico Week.” The garments he showcased were inspired by traditional huipiles, rebozos and pre-Hispanic design, but what stood out most was the striking pink color he had used. The shade, visually derived from Mexico’s landscapes and bougainvillea flowers, was quickly dubbed Mexican pink, and from that moment served as a symbol of Mexican pride.

The color is everywhere — the famous Luis Barragán Casa Giraldi in Mexico City’s San Miguel Chapultepec neighborhood is a prime example of rosa mexicano in action — and has been for hundreds of years, often achieved by mixing the aforementioned cochineal red with other dyes. In 2015, Mexico City rebranded its taxis to reflect the color, now associated with the country’s charisma and vibrance.

Mexican green

Quetzal bird
The quetzal bird’s feathers were revered by earlier cultures in Mexico. (Gobierno de Mexico)

Green was revered by the Mexica and earlier cultures as the color of life, fertility and hope. The feathers of the quetzal bird — vivid and green — were reserved for nobility and deity imagery, especially for the god Quetzalcoatl. Jade was another shade of sacred green, represented in its most notable form as a funerary mask for Pakal the Great of Palenque, the ancient Maya city in Chiapas. To these early inhabitants of what we now call Mexico, green symbolized eternal life and power.

Traditionally, pigments were derived from diverse plant and mineral sources. The muicle plant’s leaves were boiled for hours until a deep emerald liquid emerged. The barba de león (dodder plant) provided a different shade when combined with various lichens (symbiotic relationships between a fungus and algae), which resulted in the vibrant green details found on Chiapas huipiles. The earth itself also provided various pigments, and green clay deposits found near volcanic regions were ground into fine powders and mixed with plant-based binders for murals and architecture.

Mexican yellow

Mexican cempasúchil grown in Puebla state showcases one of the country’s most vibrant yellows. (Mireya Novo/Cuartoscuro)

Mexican yellow carries profound spiritual significance as the color from which humanity was born. In Maya mythology, the gods formed the first people from golden maize dough, making yellow the fundamental color of creation and marking every aspect of Mexican culture, including daily meals and religious ceremonies.

The extraction of yellow pigments was an art form — artisans knew to gather cempasúchil (marigold) petals at dawn because their color was most intense. They would grind the petals with volcanic stone mortars and mix the paste with mineral salts, creating a lasting golden dye. Sunflower petals were also used, but resulted in a different shade. Clay ochres were also used, carefully selected for their iron content and ground into powders that could withstand centuries of exposure.

Día de Muertos is perhaps the most iconic example of Mexican yellow, with marigold petals used as colorful pathways for souls returning from the afterlife. The color also shows up in Izamal, Yucatán’s famous yellow pueblo. Whether painted in the brilliant shade as a nod to the ancient Maya sun god Kinich Kakmó or for the 1993 arrival of Pope John Paul II, it remains a symbol of Mexico’s connection to the spiritual realm.

Mexican purple: the royal dye of the coast

Púrpura pansa
The púrpura pansa snail secretes a color that changes from yellow to green to magical purple. (Gobierno de Mexico)

Purpura prehispánica is one of the rarest and most labor-intensive colors in world history. Indigenous Mixtec and other coastal peoples of Oaxaca started producing the legendary deep purple dye centuries ago. The hue is derived from ink secreted by the marine snail púrpura pansa. Because of the difficult extraction, the precious color was reserved exclusively for priests, rulers and sacred textiles.

The process starts with gentle stimulation to release a milky secretion that’s then applied to cotton yarn. Once the liquid is exposed to sunlight, it transforms from yellow to green to a permanent purple. It takes hundreds of snails and many hours to dye even a single skein of thread, making each purple garment extraordinarily valuable.

Too precious to fade

This rarity nearly led to the tradition’s near-extinction — foreign corporations began overharvesting in the 1980s when international interest in natural fabric dyes surged. Japan’s Imperial Purple Inc. hired non-Mixtec fishermen to collect snails year-round, disregarding sustainable practices long in place to protect the creatures from harm. By 1988, the Mexican government declared the purpura snail federally protected. Imperial Purple Inc. was expelled, and harvest rights were restricted only to licensed Mixtec dyers following traditional conservation cycles.

What makes Mexican colors so distinctive isn’t just their vibrancy, but the stories they carry. These pigments have survived conquest, transformation, and globalization, their symbolic power transcending the methods used to create them. In a world increasingly dominated by synthetic dyes and mass production, Mexico’s ancestral palette reminds us that some traditions are simply too precious to fade.

Bethany Platanella is a travel planner and lifestyle writer based in Mexico City. She lives for the dopamine hit that comes directly after booking a plane ticket, exploring local markets, practicing yoga and munching on fresh tortillas. Sign up to receive her Sunday Love Letters to your inbox, peruse her blog or follow her on Instagram.

Why my early hope in Sheinbaum’s Mexico has wilted

By
María Meléndez
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20
Protest sign with the word "SILENCIO" and a modified photo of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on a poster at a "Generation X" protest near Mexico City's National Palace in November 2025, a sign of the political polarization currently heightening in Mexico.
Polarized and at times violent "Generation X" marches have taken place outside Mexico City's National Palace and in other major Mexican cities this month. The protests have been distinctly anti-Sheinbaum, and the president has in turn accused them of being co-opted by opposition parties. (Camila Ayala Benabib/Cuartoscuro)

Amigos, indulge me a confessional preamble: This is just my angle — that of one observer, close to the ground, a little haunted by the warning flare now flickering over Mexican politics. 

My intent isn’t to convert skeptics or inspire unanimity but to inject another thread into the noisy tapestry of public debate — a mosaic that too often leaves out dissent and discomfort.

Sheinbaum in Zapopan
Sheinbaum is significantly more popular than her five most recent predecessors were at the completion of their first year in office. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro)

A few months back, I admitted in print that I hadn’t voted for President Claudia Sheinbaum or her party, yet found myself — rather unexpectedly — moved by the promise of her early months in office. There was something genuinely hopeful in the way she handled Washington’s overtures, how she and federal Security Minister Omar Harfuch grappled with the crime organizations, how she made bold efforts to attract foreign investment and, not least, appointed a self-declared feminist cabinet. 

I said then — and I say now — that the judicial reform, whose final steps into law she shepherded, was a dangerous regression. But still, hope was afoot. Even among my skeptical friends, that faint but palpable sense of possibility drifted through our conversations.

A Michoacán mayor’s murder and polarization

Yet, today, that hope has curdled. The murder of Carlos Manzo was the inflection point — not just for its brutality but also for the eerie sense of déjà vu it delivered. 

Manzo wasn’t swallowed by the anonymizing tide of statistics. He was on camera, pleading with the president to protect his city — Uruapan. Sheinbaum’s response, from the mañanera’s sacred dais, was to urge Manzo to follow official procedures. Bureaucracy offered as balm. 

He did, dutifully. In the end, the Mexican National Guard’s “protection” extended to just one man — not to a community gripped by real peril.

Carlos Manzo
Uruapan Mayor Carlos Manzo holds up his young son shortly before he was felled by gunshots at a Day of the Dead event in his city’s central square. (X)

Protests erupted, first in Uruapan, then across Michoacán. The unrest found its face and symbol — the sombrero, a homegrown call to reclaim basic security. As former electoral councilor Luis Carlos Ugalde observed, these were perfect conditions for authentic mobilization: a fallen leader, a potent symbol, a crisis and an urgent call to action.

But let’s not mistake consequences for coincidence. According to reporting in the news magazine Wired, a group of young Mexicans — organizing on Discord, the online chat platform favored by gamers worldwide — were galvanized by the Nepal movement to denounce corruption and violence. Yet, almost instantly after Manzo’s killing, social media profiles surfaced for “Generación Z,” purportedly a leaderless and idealistic movement but quickly entangled with National Action Party (PAN) and Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) operatives. 

Right from the outset, the movement showed signs of being co-opted, as Sheinbaum herself pointed out.

The choreography of blame and deflection

During her November 13 daily press conference, President Sheinbaum invited Miguel Ángel Elorza, head of Infodemia.mx — a Mexican website dedicated to exposing “fake news” — to disclose the faces, names and histories of protest organizers, as if these citizens had morphed overnight into public enemy number one. 

In the presidential press conference that followed Manzo’s murder, Sheinbaum reverted to a familiar script: invoking “the opposition,” brandishing memories of Calderón’s drug war and deflecting blame onto the ghosts of administrations past.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, left, at her daily press conference alongside journalist Miguel Angel Elorza, head of the website Infodemia. Both are onstage, Sheinbaum watching as Elorza speaks at a podium bearing the Mexican government's official seal. Elorza speaks to reporters off camera.
Journalist Miguel Ángel Elorza is the head of Infodemia, a Mexican website that promotes itself as an impartial organization exposing “fake news” stories. The Latin American Center for Investigative Journalism, however, calls Infodemia “a sophisticated official propaganda apparatus” whose information favors the Morena Party. (Graciela López Herrera/Cuartoscuro)

Polarization, in Mexico, has become second nature — a convenient shield against reckoning with uncomfortable truths. PAN president Felipe Calderón’s crime-fighting policy of militarization was once denounced by Sheinbaum’s side; now, her policies — hardly distinguishable — are met with a choreography of blame and denial.

The absurdity is evident: No single leader, least of all Sheinbaum, created the cartels’ stranglehold on the country or Mexico’s perilous vulnerability. And what she inherited was a ticking time bomb. 

Expectations that she could defuse this bomb before the World Cup begins are the stuff of fantasy. Yet, what’s most disturbing isn’t the persistence of Mexico’s insecurity but the almost theatrical response from the National Palace: finger-pointing and spectacle, rather than reflection and reform.

Co-opted marches, manufactured consent

A lone protester wearing a cowboy hat and an orange vest stands with outstretched arms, holding a Mexican flag and another flag with a skull and crossbones, facing a line of Mexican riot police wearing helmets and holding shields on a sunny city street.
A block of riot police kept protesters from progressing along Reforma Avenue Thursday during the second of two “Generation X” protests in the nation’s capital. A Revolution Day parade was taking place on the same streets at the time. (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro)

As for marches — I don’t join them anymore. In a country where paid crowds are a matter of course, public protest often feels performative, stripped of its potency. Still, to even have the right to gather, to vent — even if only on paper — remains a privilege not to be scoffed at. But this fragile right is easily crushed. One hurled accusation — that your outrage is bought, your protest orchestrated by “la oposición” — can cheapen and silence dissent. Criticism these days is quickly tarred as betrayal.

I already can hear the response: “Here’s another bitter PAN supporter.” But after years in the media trenches, cynicism is nonpartisan; I mistrust all parties equally. If the president were PAN or PRI, you’d still be reading this exact argument.

I agree with the president on one point: In Mexico, social movements have long doubled as opportunistic platforms for politicians seeking electoral gain. It is, indeed, immoral that the PAN, PRI, and even business tycoons like Ricardo Salinas Pliego rush to capitalize on a tragedy. Profiting from violence and grief is indefensible.

Yet, with every protest, the government’s impulse isn’t to listen but to shame — to publicly expose those who organize marches, putting names and faces on screen as if organizing a protest had become an act of subversion, not a civic right. 

Was this spectacle necessary? Was it ever justified? When the president mocks the existence of elderly marchers at a “Gen Z” march, even as intelligence briefings confirm real grievances driving them, does this reflect a government open to dissent — or just skilled at denial?

Doctors, farmers and parents getting lumped together with agitators and dismissed with a shrug — that’s not engagement, it’s erasure.

The manual of good governance — lost in translation

Demonstrators in Chilpancingo, Mexico, hold signs reading "Young people want a safe Mexico" and "For a secular and quality education" during a political protest
Media photos like these of a Generation X protest in Chilpancingo, Guerrero, prompted President Sheinbaum to claim that the “Generation X” protests were not genuine but co-opted by political opposition parties. The mayor of Chilpancingo was assassinated just over a year ago. (Dassaev Téllez Adame/Cuartoscuro)

The ancient Roman philosopher and statesman Cicero believed rulers should serve all people impartially. By this metric, Sheinbaum falters. A 25-year-old protest organizer gets a public drubbing while party insiders dogged by corruption accusations get a free pass. Justice in Mexico is doled out with a troubling selectivity.

Among friends and acquaintances, it’s less the ideology that alarms and more the sense projected by the government that even reasonable critique is suspect — a nation-state on the defensive, where questions equal subversion. 

In this context, 37,000 Mexicans — mostly privileged, mostly employers — have chosen to rebuild their lives in Spain and Portugal, according to the financial magazine Forbes. If this many Mexicans are quietly weighing the option of leaving their homeland, it’s not a fluke; it’s a tremor.

The question we should all ask

If the president were listening, I’d ask: What happened to the hope that once united ordinary citizens — doctors, farmers, mothers — under a promise of something better? Perhaps the answer is this: A government that exposes and discredits dissenters leaves little room for loyalty, less still for hope.

To criticize is not to betray; it is to take citizenship seriously. The real “yellow light” of alarm is not to be found in the street protests rocking Mexican cities but in the highest office of the land — where forgetting that criticism is democracy’s lifeblood may be the gravest issue of all.

Maria Meléndez is an influencer with half a degree in journalism

MND Tutor | 99 Datos

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MND Plus
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Welcome to MND Tutor! This interactive learning tool is designed to help you improve your Spanish by exploring real news articles from Mexico News Daily. Instead of just memorizing vocabulary lists or grammar rules, you’ll dive into authentic stories about Mexican culture, current events, and daily life… What better way to learn Spanish?

Sometimes, the best way to get to know a country is to take a look at the numbers. Mexico News Daily has done just that this week, profiling the nation in 99 different statistics.

Try your Spanish (and math) skills, as MND Tutor returns for your weekly dose of Spanish language learning.



Let us know how you did!

The MND News Quiz of the Week: November 22nd

By
MND Plus
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1
News quiz
(Mexico News Daily)

What's been going on in the news this week? Our weekly quiz is here to keep you on top of what’s happening in Mexico.

Get informed, stay smart.

Are you ready?  Let’s see where you rank vs. our expert community!

An American citizen living in Tijuana is facing 20 years in prison for what crime?

Which Mexico City metro line reopened this week after a total overhaul?
Line 1 trains

Google is set to open it's first AI lab in Mexico. Where?
Google building and logo

The state of Jalisco is set to get 1500 new "safe spaces" for women threatened by domestic violence. Where will they be located?
Two women working together at a local coffee shop

A brand new "F1 quality" test track has opened in Mexico City. Which cars will be available to drive there?

Foreign Direct Investment in Mexico in 2025 has already exceeded the 2024 total. How much money has been invested?
Marcelo Ebrard presenting during the mañanera

National Coordinator of Digital Infrastructure Jorge Luis Pérez Hernández believes Mexico is 3 years away from what achievement?
Advanced tech exports from Mexico to U.S.

Something mysterious is afoot in the state of Tamaulipas. What?
Tampico's historic center, in the northeaster state of Tamaulipas, Mexico

Puerto Vallarta's international airport is getting a new U.S. connection. Where to?
Southwest aircraft over desert

Tabasco's Fatima Bosch has triumphed at the 2025 Miss World contest. Where was the contest held?
Miss Universe Fatima Bosch waves at the camera while wearing a crown surrounded by other pageant contestants

No women are exempt from groping … even the president

By
Sarah DeVries
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2
President Claudia Sheinbaum stands in front of a Mexican flag
President Sheinbaum said she intended to press charges and launch an anti-harassment campaign. She added that groping is classified as a crime in Mexico City, but not in every Mexican state. (Graciela López / Cuartoscuro.com)

“Geez,” my partner said one night as we were driving on a cobblestone road. “Does this lady not realize there are sidewalks?”

The young woman in question was indeed walking exactly in the middle of the street. “No, that’s smart,” I told him. “It’s harder for someone to jump out at you from some dark corner if you’re as much in the open as possible. Besides, if anyone tried, others would be more likely to see it happen.”

Young woman walking in Mexico
A woman walking in the middle of the street in Mexico. (Pexels/Gerardo Manzano)

I also told him about how most women, including me, walk with our keys poking out from our fists when walking alone at night. “If you go for the eyes, they’re less likely to be able to chase you.”

This is part of the wealth of knowledge shared among almost all women, especially urban dwellers.

Incidents of groping 

President Sheinbaum’s groping incident — and the subsequent accusations of it being made up — have had me thinking a lot about unwanted touching on the street.

Thankfully for me, it hasn’t happened in a while. Part of the reason, I think, is that I’m older and therefore not as conventionally attractive as I used to be (to random dudes, anyway — I think I’m super cute). I’m also often with my partner and kid. Finally, people pay less attention to others these days now that they can read WhatsApp messages or check Facebook while they’re locomoting. It’s the sunny side of us all being smartphone zombies: creeps sometimes being too distracted to ogle and harass women.

There was a time, though, when I’d get my butt grabbed by a strange man on the street at least once a year. Usually, they’d walk straight past with a smirk, though once I had a particularly scary incident in the early pre-dawn morning. He’d grabbed me under my skirt, no one around, then stared at me for a few seconds as if deciding where to go from there. (Thankfully, my yelling made him “decide” to run off.)

It’s part of the reason I have a marked preference for big, scary-looking dogs. “That’s right! Better cross the street, dude!”

President Sheinbaum groping incident
President Sheinbaum’s assault occurred as she walked through downtown Mexico City on her way to a meeting, accompanied by a group of aides. (Video screenshot)

Even now, if there aren’t too many people around, I’ll stop and pretend to look at something on my phone or fidget with my keys until a strange man walking briskly behind me passes. It’s like the kind of response people who’ve been badly bitten by dogs feel when one starts barking. Pounding heart, panic growing: the response becomes physical and involuntary.

A sense of entitlement

The fact that this happened to the president of the freaking country does not surprise me at all. Why? Because I know from personal experience — and so do all women — that there are men out there who simply believe they have the right to do what they want with women’s bodies, the main obstacle being a reasonable chance of getting away with it.

It’s not the majority — thank goodness — but it’s enough for us all to have had experience with the gross shock of it. Multiple experiences, mostly.

It’s not just a problem in Mexico, either. Women politicians all over the world put up with the same behavior.

As for the PRI politician who suggested it was set up as a distraction, I’d argue the accusation itself is a distraction. From what? The fact that opposition to (the very imperfect) Morena movement can’t get good enough proposals together to move people, that’s what.

And it was an ill-thought-out tactic, at that: accuse the woman in question of orchestrating it? Read the room, man.

Security for AMLO and President Sheinbaum

Mexico's former president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador at a press conference in the presidential palace in Mexico City. He is standing at the presidential podium and speaking to reporters with his arms wide open on either side of him.
Mexico’s former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador famously avoided using bodyguards. (Government of Mexico)

AMLO, the father of the party that has since won a supermajority in Mexico, was famous for, among other things, eschewing bodyguards. He surrounded himself with “citizen helpers” (the “ayudantía,” in Spanish) instead. It’s a great political tactic, especially for a populist: “I don’t want to be separated from the people. I want to be with them.”

“You will have access to me if we’re in the same space” is a great way to convince people you don’t see yourself as above them.

La presidenta has continued this tradition, surrounding herself with a group of ayudantía of her own, and not necessarily with security training.

I love it for PR. I don’t necessarily love it for her actual security. In a country famous for its political assassinations and femicides and machismo, I’d personally want at least one extra layer. Even if it were discrete, it seems some sort of subtle secret service detail would be a good idea.

Scrutiny for the justice system

In any case, that’s her decision. I’m glad she pressed charges, anyway. This gives the justice system a chance to be scrutinized, too: What are you going to do about it? (As of this writing, he’s being held in the sex crimes division of the FGJ after assaulting two other women. Lovely guy.)

Pressing charges was also a great signal to the women of the country: these things are worth making a big deal about. They’re not, as many argue, “part of the job.” If you ask me, that’s a big, important change from the last administration. I generally — mostly — liked AMLO. But one of my biggest complaints about him was that he didn’t seem to take women’s issues seriously enough. Remember his complaints about the women’s protests?

Woman protesting violence against women
Sexual violence against women should not be normalized. (United Nations Sustainable Development Group)

Instituting gender parity in politics was a great move, but if we’re really to achieve equality, it’s got to be on all levels: the macro and the micro.

With Sheinbaum, I’m seeing his antidote: women’s issues are serious, and environmental issues are serious — exactly what we’d been missing.

President Sheinbaum isn’t going to solve the problem of sexual harassment in Mexico. But she is elevating it to the point that it gets the attention it deserves and is setting an important precedent. Through her actions, the message is clear: it’s not something to ignore and be embarrassed about. It’s a crime, and like all crimes, it begs for justice.

Sarah DeVries is a writer and translator based in Xalapa, Veracruz. She can be reached through her website, sarahedevries.substack.com.

The unique style of Los Cabos

By
Chris Sands
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0
Los Cabos resort
This vista at Esperanza, Auberge Resorts Collection, boasts some defining elements of Los Cabos style. (Esperanza)

The concept of genius loci comes from Ancient Rome, where it translated to the “spirit of the place.” As in, the guardian spirit who looked out for those who lived there. In modern times, however, the phrase has lost its mythological overtones and is now discussed primarily in terms of philosophy and aesthetics. 

The premier exponent of this concept as it evolved in modernity was noted Norwegian architect and theorist Christian Norberg-Schulz, whose influential 1979 work, “Genius Loci: Towards a Phenomenology of Architecture,” posited that the spirit of a place — any place — emerges from the confluence of several factors, such as geography, history, climate and available materials. From these, a definable style is born, one that is unique to each city or region.

Palo de arco pergola
The palo de arco pergola, Baja California Sur’s gift to the world. (Esperanza, Auberge Resorts Collection)

It’s an interesting idea, since almost anyone who has lived anywhere for any length of time begins to note certain architectural elements, interior design motifs and fashions that seem unique to that place, and in some intangible way, reflect its character and personality. Indeed, I’ve long been conscious of what might be called a distinctive Los Cabos style. I’d be hard-pressed to try to define it, but the core elements are unmistakable.  

Signature architectural elements

The two most enduring elements of Los Cabos architecture are palo de arco and the palapa. The former style is most associated with rustic yet elegant pergolas, but it can be used to build virtually anything, from furniture to fences. Palo de arco refers to the way flexible yet sturdy branches from small Tecoma stans trees (aka palo de arco) are artfully arranged, without the need for nails to hold them together. The roots of this architectural style date back to the Indigenous cultures of Baja California Sur, and it has persisted through the Jesuit mission period and colonization into the luxury resorts of modern Los Cabos.

The palapa, a thatched-leaf roof made from palm fronds, seems more generic, since it can now be found in beachfront destinations around the country. Although actually, its origins aren’t Mexican at all. The word “palapa” comes from Tagalog, and the structures themselves originated in the Philippines and were shared with Mexico via the Manila Galleon Trade. This global trade route, which helped to connect Spain’s then far-flung colonies, was active from 1565 until 1815. Traditionally, only one or two ships per year would make the trip from Manila to Acapulco, laden with silk, spices, porcelain and other luxury goods from China and elsewhere in Asia that were purchased with Mexican silver. 

Yes, Los Cabos was a frequent stop on this route. By the time the crew of these ships completed their months-long journey, they were generally sick from scurvy and running low or completely out of potable water. Thus, they would replenish themselves at the freshwater estuary in San José del Cabo and feast on local fare before sailing on to Acapulco.

These ships, known as the Nao de China in Mexico, would prove irresistible to English pirates, leading to several famous skirmishes in Cabo San Lucas Bay, where the pirates inevitably lay in wait due to the shielding cover provided by the Land’s End headland. The trade route also provided a historical basis for the use of palapas in Los Cabos, although these have only been commonly built here since the 1970s. Like palo de arco pergolas, palapas are now ubiquitous at local beaches and atop restaurants and swim-up bars at local luxury resorts. 

It may seem odd that the latter properties would embrace such rustic architectural elements. Still, they contribute mightily to the inimitable style of laid-back luxury that is unique to Los Cabos. Doubtless, they even helped to inspire it. Norberg-Schulz would have certainly thought so, since he argued that these vernacular architectural elements are an integral part of what creates place identities. 

Fashion and décor 

Four Seasons Los Cabos
Seamless transitions from indoor to outdoor spaces are a signature aspect of interior design in Los Cabos. (Four Seasons Resort and Residences at Cabo del Sol)

Geography and climate, two factors Norberg-Schulz noted as crucial in the establishment of a genius loci, have obviously influenced interior design in Los Cabos. The municipality’s 350 days of sunshine annually have made possible the seamless transition between indoor and outdoor spaces, aided by open floor plans and retractable walls and doors for breezy, uninterrupted flow. Palettes featuring earthy and cool colors also reflect the area’s unique geography, in which mountains and dramatic desert terrains are bounded by the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Cortés. 

The coastline, specifically Los Cabos’ 125 miles of beautiful beaches, is the most notable factor when it comes to local fashion. Beach-friendly attire, for example, is a must-pack for vacationers or must-purchase upon arrival. But just as Los Cabos’ interior design often, as befits a Mexican destination, boasts trademark accents such as Talavera tiles and Mexican-sourced ceramics, textiles and furnishings, regional beach-style fashions among locals and long-time visitors also have an unmistakably Latin flavor. 

The annual Los Cabos Fashion Week, for instance, is organized by the Fashion Designers of Latin America, and has been hosted by bastions of casually elegant resort wear like Esperanza, Solas and ME Cabo by Meliá. The latter’s pre-Hurricane Odile White Parties at Nikki Beach were perhaps the best expression of this style, a mix of breezy dresses and stylish guayaberas, poolside cover-ups and collared linen shirts, sunglasses and sandals. 

But it’s not just design or fashion that defines the Los Cabos style. There’s a bit of attitude involved as well, the relaxed anything-goes embrace of life at Land’s End, the spirit of the place once captured by such Los Cabos-originated brands as No Bad Days and Die Trying. It’s hard to capture in words, but it would have been recognized by Norberg-Schulz as the genius loci that emerges when geography, climate and culture collide. 

Chris Sands is the former Cabo San Lucas local expert for the USA Today travel website 10 Best and writer of Fodor’s Los Cabos travel guidebook. He’s also a contributor to numerous websites and publications, including Tasting Table, Marriott Bonvoy Traveler, Forbes Travel Guide, Porthole Cruise, Cabo Living and Mexico News Daily.

Mexico’s week in review: Sheinbaum weathers the storm

By
MND Staff
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Aerial view of the line-up before the start of the parade and civic-military ceremony marking the 115th anniversary of the start of the Mexican Revolution in the Zócalo square.
Aerial view of the line-up before the start of the parade and civic-military ceremony marking the 115th anniversary of the start of the Mexican Revolution in Mexico City's Zócalo. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro)

After violent anti-government protests rocked Mexico City’s Zócalo on Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump seized on the unrest, declaring that Mexico has “some big problems” before renewing his threats of military strikes against cartels on Mexican soil. With international media questioning whether President Sheinbaum had lost control of her country, the president who had enjoyed sky-high approval ratings throughout her first year appeared to be facing her first true crisis.

By midweek, however, the Sheinbaum administration was on offense. The arrest of an alleged mastermind in the assassination of Uruapan Mayor Carlos Manzo revealed how authorities had unraveled a cartel chain of command that tried to cover its tracks by killing anyone who could talk — two key witnesses were found dead on a highway, but their phones told the whole story. That breakthrough, combined with the arrest of 54 suspected CJNG operatives in violence-plagued Colima, offered a measure of vindication for a government under fire for its security strategy.

The week closed on lighter notes: Tabasqueña Fátima Bosch was crowned Miss Universe in Bangkok, becoming the fourth Mexican woman to claim the title, while a Frida Kahlo self-portrait sold for US $54.7 million at Sotheby’s, shattering the auction record for any female artist.

Didn’t have time to read this week’s top stories? Here’s what you missed.

Trump threatens military strikes; Sheinbaum invokes history

President Donald Trump made new threats of unilateral military action against Mexican drug cartels.

Speaking from the Oval Office on Monday, Trump said that launching strikes in Mexico to stop drugs would be “OK” with him, citing his administration’s recent lethal strikes against alleged drug boats in international waters. When asked whether he would only act with Mexico’s permission, Trump declined to answer directly.

President Claudia Sheinbaum responded firmly at her Tuesday press conference. “The last time the United States came to Mexico with an intervention, they took half the territory,” she said, referencing the 19th-century Mexican-American War.

Sheinbaum reiterated that she has repeatedly declined Trump’s offers to send U.S. troops into Mexico, emphasizing that while the two countries can collaborate and coordinate, Mexico will not accept foreign intervention.

The president has expressed her disapproval of the Trump administration’s strategy of bombing perceived “drug boats” from Central and South America. Earlier in the week, she announced that her government had reached an agreement with its U.S. counterpart for the Mexican Navy to intercept vessels suspected of transporting drugs in international waters off Mexico’s coast.

Sheinbaum previously spoke out in favor of arresting suspected drug traffickers at sea, rather than killing them. The agreement, she said, means U.S. strikes near Mexican waters are “no longer” happening.

Adding to the tensions, the Mexican Navy removed six warning signs from Playa Bagdad in Tamaulipas after unidentified men arrived by boat and planted them on the beach. The signs declared the area a “Restricted Area” of the U.S. Department of War (formerly Defense) and warned that trespassers could be “detained and searched.”

The U.S. government later acknowledged it had hired contractors to install the signs, with the Pentagon attributing the incident to confusion over the border’s location due to changes in water depth and topography. The International Boundary and Water Commission is now reviewing boundary maps.

‘Gen Z’ protest in Mexico City dominates domestic discourse

A mass protest against insecurity organized by a self-described “Generation Z” movement drew approximately 17,000 people to Mexico City on Saturday, though most participants were older adults rather than young people. The demonstration turned violent when a “black bloc” contingent attacked police in the Zócalo, injuring 100 officers according to authorities.

The protest — which occurred alongside a march by the Sombrero Movement (Movimiento del Sombrero) — was catalyzed by the Nov. 1 assassination of Uruapan Mayor Carlos Manzo, an outspoken anti-crime crusader. Protesters demanded greater security, condemned corruption and even called for Sheinbaum’s resignation.

At her Monday press conference, Sheinbaum blamed opposition parties and billionaire businessman Ricardo Salinas for financing the protest, claiming 90 million pesos (US $4.9 million) was spent promoting the march through social media, with backing from foreign right-wing organizations. The government’s “fake news debunker-in-chief” presented evidence alleging coordinated promotion from abroad.

Miguel Ángel Elorza Vázquez
Sheinbaum’s designated fact-checker Miguel Ángel Elorza Vázquez traced the PAN party’s paths of influence ahead of last weekend’s ‘Gen Z’ protest. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro)

Further bolstering the government’s claims, Morena party president Luisa María Alcalde revealed on Wednesday that Edson Andrade, a key Gen Z protest organizer who had presented himself as nonpartisan, holds a 2.1-million-peso (US $114,800) contract with the opposition National Action Party (PAN). Andrade fled Mexico after the revelation, claiming government persecution.

A second Gen Z march on Thursday — Revolution Day — drew only about 200 participants. In her Revolution Day address, Sheinbaum declared that those who call for violence and encourage hate are mistaken. The president also asserted that various other people are “mistaken,” including those who call for a “foreign intervention” to combat organized crime, those who think “women are weak” and those who believe that the “fourth transformation” political movement she leads is asleep at the wheel.

Arrest made in Mayor Manzo’s assassination

Federal Security Minister Omar García Harfuch announced Wednesday the arrest of an alleged mastermind behind Mayor Manzo’s killing. Jorge Armando “N,” also known as “El Licenciado,” was detained in Morelia and is allegedly affiliated with the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.

Authorities pieced together the case after discovering the bodies of two men who had accompanied the 17-year-old shooter before the attack. Analysis of their phones revealed a WhatsApp group used to coordinate the assassination, with Jorge Armando “N” issuing instructions.

Security Ministry arrests alleged mastermind behind killing of Michoacán anti-crime crusader

Messages showed real-time updates from the Festival of Candles, where Manzo was shot, and orders to target the mayor even if he was surrounded by other people. Reports indicate Jorge Armando “N” operated under orders from the CJNG’s second-in-command.

FDI hits record high as bond outflows continue

Mexico’s economic data continues to present a mixed picture. President Sheinbaum announced that foreign direct investment (FDI) reached a record US $40.9 billion in the first nine months of 2025, a 14.5% increase over the same period last year and already surpassing all of 2024’s total.

New investment — as opposed to reinvested profits — jumped over 200%, from $2 billion to $6.5 billion.

However, a separate report revealed that foreign investors have withdrawn more than $7 billion from Mexican government bonds this year, marking seven consecutive months of capital outflows. Analysts attribute the exodus to global financial volatility, uncertainty over the upcoming USMCA review and declining interest rates on Mexican instruments.

In trade news, Mexico became the top buyer of U.S. goods for the first time in history, surpassing Canada. Between January and August, Mexico imported $226.4 billion worth of American products, underscoring the deep integration of the two economies.

World Cup updates

With the 2026 FIFA World Cup just over 200 days away, Mexico is ramping up preparations on multiple fronts. FIFA announced that Guadalajara and Monterrey will host playoff matches in March to determine the final two teams in the 48-team field, with six nations from five confederations competing.

On Wednesday, the government unveiled a program titled “Social World Cup,” an ambitious initiative featuring over 5,000 activities, including school sports programs, 177 street fairs, the creation of 10,000 murals and attempts at three Guinness World Records.

Beyond the stadium: ‘Social World Cup’ program to rally soccer-loving communities around art and physical education

The program will also offer free public broadcasts of matches and promote Mexico’s cultural and gastronomic heritage to visitors and citizens alike.

99 facts you need to know about Mexico

In honor of World Statistics Day on Oct. 20, Mexico’s national statistics agency INEGI published a small book presenting the 99 facts you need to know about Mexico.

This week, we shared the book’s contents translated into English. Check it out here:

Looking ahead 

As the seventh anniversary of the “4T” approaches in December, Sheinbaum faces the challenge of converting strong approval ratings into tangible security improvements that can quiet critics — and keep protesters off the streets.

The arrest of an alleged mastermind in the Manzo assassination demonstrates the state’s growing capacity to answer violence with prosecution, but whether such wins can shift public perception of insecurity remains to be seen.

With World Cup preparations accelerating and trade negotiations looming, the coming weeks will test whether Mexico can maintain its delicate balance between economic pragmatism and political independence.

This story contains summaries of original Mexico News Daily articles. The summaries were generated by Claude, then revised and fact-checked by a Mexico News Daily staff editor.

Should the US help Mexico beat the cartels? A perspective from our CEO

By
Travis Bembenek
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US soldiers walk along a rust-colored Mexico border wall
U.S. soldiers patrol the border with Mexico Sierra Blanca, Texas, in March. (Pfc. Malik Waddy-Fiffee/US Army)

What a week it has been. I have to admit that I continue to be perplexed by the “anti-Sheinbaum and anti-Morena” protests this past weekend in Mexico City. Despite the name, it hardly felt like a bunch of Gen Z’ers (keep in mind Gen Z members are officially 13-28 years old). A close review of videos of the protestors showed many that seemed to be far out of that age range, and it struck me as odd that things got so violent so quickly. I am NOT one to believe conspiracy theories, but something felt really weird about this protest. Violence is a very serious issue in Mexico, full stop. But recent data of Sheinbaum’s first year in office show the most significant reduction in violent crimes in the country in a generation. The reduction comes in only her first year in office against criminal organizations that have become entrenched over decades. So why now?

Then, almost on cue, many news outlets of the U.S. political right and even President Trump himself began to talk about President Sheinbaum supposedly beginning to lose control of Mexico. Trump even referenced the Mexico City protests in his comments earlier this week. Keep in mind that President Sheinbaum currently has one of the highest approval ratings of any political leader in the world and has actually increased her approval rating in Mexico since elected. It’s increasingly clear that there are groups in both Mexico and the United States that are pushing a narrative that violence is spiraling out of control in Mexico, as well as the idea that Sheinbaum’s administration is powerless and/or unwilling to do anything about it.

Trump reacts to Mexico City protest, says military strikes to stop drugs are ‘OK with me’

I have heard from countless Americans that the U.S. should just “get the job done” with the cartels in Mexico. But what does that exactly mean? And why would we think it would be so simple? If it were that easy, why wouldn’t Americans “get the job done” on the U.S. side of the border?

Data shows that the vast majority of drugs enter via the land border and as a result must pass through U.S. border control. Further data shows that the vast majority of those that transit drugs into the United States are in fact U.S. citizens. Once across the border, the drugs travel for thousands of miles to nearly every community of the country. Earlier this week, Trump said that regarding Mexican cartels, “We know the addresses of every drug lord … We know their front door, we know everything about every one of them.” If that in fact were the case, one would think the U.S. would also know a lot about the criminal organizations on the U.S. side of the border and, as a result, do more to stop them. That domestic network — stretching from ports of entry to suburban mailboxes — is the quiet part too rarely talked about.

We all want solutions to the scourge of drugs in communities on both sides of the border, but if there were in fact easy answers, one would think we would already be implementing them. Many people say the root cause of the problem is the demand, and that the U.S. has to focus on that. A valid point. But there is also a very significant supply chain throughout the U.S. that authorities there have been unable to stop. Here is the uncomfortable truth: There is no serious national plan in the U.S. to reduce demand at scale or to disrupt the domestic distribution web that delivers fentanyl, meth and cocaine to neighborhoods from Portland to Pittsburgh — and that vacuum invites more theater than strategy.

If we don’t treat addiction, rebuild community institutions and address the cultural hollowing-out that drives self-medication — family disconnection, loneliness, purposelessness — then “supply-side only” fixes will fail again, just as they have for 50 years. So let’s ground the debate in two realities that can coexist. First, President Sheinbaum has been in office for only one year and is confronting a problem that long predates her administration. Second, early statistics from her first year indicate a meaningful reduction in violent crime and an increase in cartel arrests.

Homicides down 28% in 2025: Tuesday’s mañanera recapped

So what should the U.S. do? Blowing up speed boats loaded with cocaine in the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean makes for good videos (and Department of War bravado), but will likely do very little to solve the fentanyl problem, and could even increase cocaine trafficking via land routes. So what are some of the potential options with respect to Mexico? Here are a few possibilities:

  1. Share U.S. intelligence with Mexico (without public knowledge) and trust Mexico to successfully act on it. The obvious concern here is that Mexico in the past has often either leaked the information to the cartels or been unsuccessful in acting on it.
  2. Share U.S. intelligence with Mexico (with public knowledge) to increase pressure on Mexico to act on it.
  3. Share U.S. intelligence and weapons with Mexico (without public knowledge) and trust Mexico to act on it.
  4. Share US intelligence and weapons with Mexico (with public knowledge) to increase pressure on Mexico for results.
  5. Direct strikes by the U.S. in Mexico. This would require clear legal authority, Mexican government consent, and a definition of victory beyond “hit them hard” — none of which exist today.

Many people I know on both sides of the border would advocate for option No. 5 as the obvious, no brainer choice. But when in the last 50 years has the American military quickly resolved a problem in another country? Vietnam took over 17 years of U.S. involvement. Iraq, over 8 years of U.S. involvement. Afghanistan, nearly 20 years. Even in a world of increasingly sophisticated drone warfare technology, the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war is nearing 4 years. Two years in, the Israel-Hamas war is being held together by a fragile peace agreement. Even the U.S. war on drugs is now nearing 54 years since it first began in 1971. We now have decades of evidence suggesting that killing a cartel leader or disrupting one cartel organization only leads to new ones taking over — with the drug flow and violence continuing unabated (and often increasing).

I personally think the U.S. has willing and eager partners in President Sheinbaum and Security Minister García Harfuch to reduce the levels of violence and the flow of drugs. That being said, as the recent brazen murder of the mayor of Uruapan, Michoacan, showed, the task is not one to be taken lightly. I believe the U.S. should share both intelligence and weapons (showing trust) while at the same time insisting on and verifying results from Mexico. The U.S. must also show tangible results on its side of the border with increased drug and weapons seizures — which have begun to happen. In parallel, the U.S. should finally articulate a domestic plan including expanded treatment and recovery capacity, cracking down on U.S.-based distribution cells and money laundering, expanding precursor controls and e-commerce enforcement, and investing in community-level prevention. Given that drone weapon technologies are rapidly advancing, it seems logical and reasonable that the U.S. could train Mexico to quickly and effectively use them selectively against cartel targets.

Of course, the unknown of all of this is the response of the cartels. Would they just get out of the drug business? Would they move it elsewhere? Would they accelerate diversification into other industries (avocados, fuel, extortion, etc.)? If these questions are not well thought out well in advance, the impacts could lead to a situation that is even worse than the current one.

The bottom line: Let’s hope that the previous decades of learnings and failures from the war on drugs and U.S. military involvement in other countries increase our degree of cautiousness and care. This is not a problem that a few drone or F15 strikes will solve. The right path would be an increasing degree of collaboration, cooperation and trust between the U.S. and Mexican governments. Hopefully, this would result in continued pressure on the cartels that decreases the level of violence, decreases drug production, and ensures that new areas of crime do not take its place. That would truly be a wonderful development for the citizens of both countries. It will take time, and not be easy, but we can get there if both countries acknowledge that much work needs to be done on both sides of the border.

Which course of action do you think would be most effective? I look forward to hearing your points of view in the comments.

Travis Bembenek is the CEO of Mexico News Daily and has been living, working or playing in Mexico for nearly 30 years.

Lake Texcoco recovery continues with over 4,000 hectares now underwater

By
MND Staff
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Lake Texcoco Park
After 500 years of neglect, the Mexican government, NGOs and volunteers are working to restore Lake Texcoco. They're making progress. (Javier Sanchez/Lake Texcoco Ecological Park)

Three years after it was declared a Protected Natural Area (ANP), Lake Texcoco is showing progressive recovery of flora and fauna, while roughly 4,300 hectares are now covered with water after an abundant rainy season in central Mexico.

Jorge Daniel Fonseca, director of the Lake Texcoco ANP, said that more than 43 million cubic meters of water was collected this year in the 14,000-hectare area which includes Lake Texcoco Ecological Park. 

Lake Texcoco Ecological Park sign
The park itself is home to 76 species of flora and fauna, while the entire protected natural area has almost 600 species (Lake Texcoco Ecological Park).

The aim of the ecological restoration project is to expand the lake to 9,000 hectares, a goal Fonseca expects to achieve in a year’s time. 

Lake Texcoco was a natural saline lake within the Valley of Mexico, best known for being the site of an island where the Mexica built the city of Tenochtitlan, which would later become the capital of the Aztec empire.

A century after conquering the Mexica (Aztecs) in 1521, the Spaniards built drainage systems and channels in an effort to control flooding and create land for their growing capital, Mexico City. 

On March 22, 2022, the government of Andrés Manuel López Obrador declared 78% of Lake Texcoco a Natural Protected Area, his goal being to restore the biodiversity lost due to the construction of an airport, which was canceled in 2018. 

Since then, efforts have been undertaken to re-grass the land, reforest the area, increase protected green spaces and restore bodies of water as part of the Ecological Park project inaugurated in August 2024.

Lake Texcoco has seen an increase in bird migration this year. Before construction on the airport began in 2014, an average of 150,000 migratory birds, comprising at least 182 species, arrived there annually. That number dipped to 60,000 in 2021.

Fonseca reported that this year more than 280,000 birds — including three new species — had arrived to winter in the Lake Texcoco ANP.

In total, the ANP is home to 76 species of flora and fauna and more than half of the park — 7,981 hectares  — is regarded as a priority zone, with 65% of those hectares classified as “extreme priority” due to the biodiversity. 

The National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (Conanp) is focusing its efforts on ensuring that Lake Texcoco continues to be home to the 580 species of plants, birds, amphibians, reptiles and mammals that lived and migrated there until 2021.

The project also involves recovering the surface area utilized by the unfinished airport project. After this year’s generous rainfall, 95% of the construction area has been recovered by the lake.

As Lake Texcoco recovers, rising water swallows the ruins of the canceled airport

Green spaces have emerged from among the rubble of the abandoned structures and the pilings of the canceled project barely rise above a layer of water that reaches up to 7 meters deep in areas.

The architect in charge of the restoration project, Iñaki Echeverría, told Uno TV that parts of the airport and hydraulic projects made for that project are being used to build wetlands.

He is also leading efforts to restore the bodies of water in the Ciénega de San Juan, Lagunas Xalapango, Texcoco Norte and Lake Nabor Carrillo, all within the ANP Lake Texcoco. 

With reports from La Jornada, Uno TV and El Soberano

Sheinbaum reflects on Intercam and CIBanco’s demise after US sanctions: Friday’s mañanera recapped

By
MND Staff
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4
President Sheinbaum looks out over the press pool at her morning conference
Besides U.S. bank sanctions, President Sheinbaum also touched on foreign investment and the criminal process facing the man who assaulted her earlier this month. (Juan Carlos Buenrostro / Presidencia)

The United States’ money laundering accusations against three Mexican financial institutions and the record inflow of foreign direct investment in the first nine months of 2025 were among the issues President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke about at her Friday morning press conference.

Here is a recap of the president’s Nov. 21 mañanera.

Sheinbaum: No evidence that Intercam and CIBanco committed crimes

Sheinbaum said that Mexican authorities have not found any evidence that the banks Intercam and CIBanco, and the brokerage firm Vector, had links to organized crime or engaged in money laundering.

Her statement came in response to a question about whether the “partners, shareholders or owners” of the three financial institutions were under investigation in light of the U.S. government’s accusation that they laundered money for drug cartels.

Intercam, CIBanco and Vector have all ceased to operate in Mexico, effectively killed off by the U.S. government’s allegations and its decision to prohibit transactions between them and banks in the United States. Vector was owned by Alfonso Romo, a wealthy businessman who served as former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s chief of staff for around two years.

Sheinbaum said that information the U.S. Department of the Treasury sent to Mexican authorities didn’t demonstrate any link between the three financial institutions and organized crime, or provide evidence that they had laundered money for cartels.

CIBanco
Mexican banks Intercam and CIBanco, both popular among foreign residents, were the target of U.S. sanctions earlier this year, ultimately leading both to cease operations. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro)

The information it sent “was not sufficient for Mexican authorities to file a criminal complaint,” she said.

“… The Department of the Treasury hasn’t provided any proof that shows there was something that would warrant a criminal complaint,” said Sheinbaum, who has made similar remarks on several occasions.

In June, the U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network accused Intercam, CIBanco and Vector of “laundering millions of dollars on behalf of Mexico-based cartels and facilitating payments for the procurement of precursor chemicals needed to produce fentanyl.”

Soon after, many Intercam and CIBanco customers reported they were unable to carry out transactions involving U.S. banks, even though Treasury’s sanctions hadn’t officially taken effect.

Record FDI indicative of ‘confidence’ in Mexico, president says 

Sheinbaum said that the record high foreign direct investment (FDI) in Mexico in the first nine months of the year shows there is “confidence in the country.”

The government announced on Wednesday that Mexico received just over US $40.9 billion in FDI between January and September, a 14.5% increase compared to the same period of 2024.

Foreign direct investment in Mexico climbs to record US $40.9B, already surpassing all of 2024

Sheinbaum said that investors are aware of the strength of the Mexican economy, and not just in terms of GDP growth, which has slowed considerably this year. She said they take note of things such as the reduction in poverty and job growth.

“And our proximity to the world’s largest market, the United States, will continue to generate investment in Mexico,” Sheinbaum said.

“Perhaps it will no longer be the [Mexican] automotive industry that grows the most, but now the electronics sector is growing — there is a lot of investment in electronics in Mexico. Why? Because there is very significant integration [of the sector in North America], there is a [North American] trade agreement, and, in addition, the relationship [with the U.S.] is good,” she said.

Sheinbaum said that once the 2026 review of the USMCA is completed, “there will be even greater certainty” for foreign investors.

“There is confidence” in Mexico and “there will be more,” she said.

Sheinbaum confirms she filed complaint against man who assaulted her

Sheinbaum told reporters that she filed a formal complaint with the Mexico City Attorney General’s Office (FGJ) against the man who touched her inappropriately in the historic center of the capital on Nov. 4.

President Sheinbaum files criminal complaint after groping incident on the streets of Mexico City

She said she sent a “document” to the FGJ, explaining what happened to her.

Asked whether it was important for her to formally present the complaint in person at the FGJ, Sheinbaum said she would do so “if necessary.”

“The thing is that the attorney general herself said to me: ‘All you have to do is send [a complaint] and it will be included in the investigation file,'” the president said.

The man who inappropriately touched Sheinbaum as she was walking between the National Palace and the Ministry of Public Education allegedly assaulted two other women in downtown Mexico City the same day. He was arrested and remains in custody as the case against him proceeds.

Sheinbaum said that sexual harassment has to be reported and punished, adding: “It shouldn’t happen in our country.”

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

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